Old Fashioned Broody Hen Hatch A Long and Informational Thread

[breezy]

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Thank you I will do that.

 

[welasharon]

I am looking at serama eggs that are all dark except an air cell. I cannot see movement nor hear anything but when I looked at them tonight there is a tiny triangular shaped piece that is chipped out. I can see membrane or lining or whatever it is called. Is this a pip? Not sure what day to have started counting but may have been the 10th. New broody hens (two back and forth) and young also.
sharon

 

[hokankai]

Ok, had a worrisome moment this evening...I opened the pen in the coop with Molly and her chicks and she went straight to the nest boxes?!? She jumped in and out of two before I got freaked out and put her back inside the pen with the babies.

Um...this is a problem! Is she going to leave the babies with them only having feathers on their wings? I could always stick them in the brooder with the banties...but what if she abandons them way too early and I'm not home to catch it?!

 

[Aj1911]

thinking about "grafting" some chicks onto my broody tomorrow night or the next

could i do it with young ducklings? i've been wanting some Indian runner ducks for my girlfriend (shes duck crazy

)

that or i might get a few hatchery chicks and stick under her for now.

 

[Aj1911]

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shes not going to leave them, she might very well need to lay an egg, they start laying again after about 2 weeks after hatching.

also they are done caring for them at about 4-6 weeks of age

 

[hokankai]

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shes not going to leave them, she might very well need to lay an egg, they start laying again after about 2 weeks after hatching.

also they are done caring for them at about 4-6 weeks of age

Wow, really? That makes me feel much better. I had no idea when they started laying again! There's no nest in the broody pen now, should I put one in there for her then?

 

[stonykill]

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I NEVER lift the broody to see if there are pips, so I don't know for sure in this case. I only check the nest when she is off.

What is the date she started sitting at 11pm? Mothers Day May 8th? At 11 pm? Just checking.....

i only check when she is off as well, and it was may 7th at 11pm (the eggs arrived in the mail that day)

that makes today day 25 at 11 pm

 

[Faith Hope]

Hi! I've been reading this thread for quite a while. I thought I would finally chime in. We've had chickens for about a year now. I had my first broody (a silkie -- suprise, suprise) in January! I now have 3 broodies. The same silkie has hatched out 7 chicks and I gave her 4 silkies as well. They were already 10 days old, but amazingly, she accepted them, and they love her.

The other two are both dark cornish. Have any of you heard of them being broody?

One of the dark cornishes had 12 eggs, and today is day 21. She is hatching out in a nest box about 3 - 4 feet off the ground. I noticed 4 had hatched last night, but I figured they would all be fine until morning. I figured I'd move them after she had got them all hatched. I woke early this morning and went to check on her. To my surprise, I found two chicks on the ground beneath the next boxes; they were alive and chirping, so I quickly put them back with momma in the nest box. As I checked on the rest of my chickies, I thankfully noticed 2 other chicks in the opposite corner of the coop; I thought they were dead at first. But when I picked them up, they chirped and wiggled; they were both quite cold. I slipped them under momma; I hope they will be okay.

I then searched all over the coop in case I missed some. Then I made momma a nest on the ground so this won't happen again. I counted 11 chicks and 1 remaining egg, so all are accounted for. I am very excited that she hatched out that many! Hopefully my two little cold ones will make it -- we will see.

My third broody is due to hatch on Saturday. -- We will be overrun with chicks!

Happy Hatching!

 

[newlyweds]

My game hen broody hatched out 5 cute little chicks yesterday. She is my 9th broody so far this spring, I have two repeaters that are hatching their second clutches since march, I sold there chicks soon after hatching but they get to keep these, so they won't go broody again, silly girls. I love watching my broodies with their chicks, its so sweet and cute to watch them in action.

Here's Gamey and her chicks.

 

[L0rraine]

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What an amazing picture - they are posing so perfect for the camera!